January's first days and weeks often bring with them a desire to make a change. To encourage lasting change, rather than fleeting, we need to look at how we're building habits. You might be thinking of starting a new adventure, wanting to stop something or achieving that big goal you've been thinking about for a while. Whatever it is, viewing it as a goal rather than a resolution will enable you to break it down into smaller steps and form habits. When approaching our goals, motivation will often come into play at some point.
One way to sidestep a lack of motivation is to build habits through a consistent approach to your goal.
To help with this, we've gathered the 'big ideas' in habit building in one place to provide you with everything you need to know.
1. Habits emerge without our consent
In 'The Power of Habit', Charles Duhigg explains that habits are the brain’s way of protecting itself so it has the energy to make more important decisions. It looks at what worked before and then implements it, most times without asking for your consent.
2. There is a clear pattern in how habits are formed
James Clear breaks down the 'trigger, routine, reward' pattern in ‘Atomic Habits'. It applies to both good and bad habits, existing ones and the ones you are working towards. The trigger initiates the behaviour. The routine is the action you take, and the reward solidifies the action in your mind.
3. Think small
One of the key takeaways from James Clear is that it doesn't matter how long the routine stage takes. The key is to do the routine again and again. For example, it doesn't matter how long your workout is; just put on your gym clothes (trigger) and go to the gym (routine). Your body will release endorphins as soon as you get on that treadmill (reward), whether it's for five minutes or sixty. If you keep repeating this, you soon won't have to think about going to the gym, and your brain will know what to do as soon as you put the gym shirt on.
4. Honing in on your trigger can help break bad habits and form new ones
This idea emerges throughout literature and ideas around habits. Knowing that habits start with the trigger, we can work on breaking our habits from there. For example, a smoker might get into the habit of smoking with their morning coffee, so the trigger is the coffee itself. Knowing this can help reach a solution by creating a different habit around coffee or quitting coffee altogether.
5. Begin with the end in mind
In '7 Habits of Highly Effective People', Stephen R. Covey famously states that habits are what differentiates highly successful people from others. This idea can be applied to any goal in any timeframe. First, think about your goal, then break it down into bitesize pieces. Take some time to consider what kind of habits will help you reach that goal. Do you need to learn a new skill, maybe even develop a mindset shift? The more detailed you can be, the better.
6. Belief in yourself will help you sick to your new habits
You might have heard the quote, 'Whether you think you can or think you can't, you're right.' Charles Duhigg found that this is true even for our habits. Anyone can replace an old habit, but the key that will help you stick with the new one is your own belief that you can keep to it.
7. Morning routines can set you up for a successful day
There are many books about morning routines, one being Amy Landino’s 'Good Morning, Good Life', where she breaks down how to successfully build habits for the morning that will set you up for a successful day. The key idea is that the routine is not the goal but the path towards your goal. It doesn't matter what you do as long as you can take time before the responsibilities of the day to reflect on yourself, your goals and take control of your day instead of letting the day control you.
8. Find habits that bring us joy
Marie Kondo became famous with her book series 'The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up', where she writes about organising your environment. However, the main ideas in the book can be applied to goals and habits. Sometimes we might find ourselves with goals we set because others expected it or habits we developed in an old partnership. By focusing on the habits that 'spark our joy', we can find more clarity to work towards the life we truly desire.
9. Habits help you create more freedom
Some people might challenge habits and routines because they feel too constrained by them and want more freedom. All the literature on habits, however, proposes a different perspective – that setting up certain habits and routines will give you more freedom. This is because by taking away indecision, you will have more time and energy for the things that are actually important to you.
Each of us has different habits, different goals and different strategies to conquer life. You can read about how dopamine fasting can help break negative habits here, which was written by Kate Baily, one of the co-founders of our Addictive Behaviours Coaching certificate.
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